1. Agglutinates can sometimes be distinguished from rouleaux by their characteristic appearance on blood smears (agglutination forms three-dimensional clusters, whereas rouleaux forms stacks), however this can be difficult with severe rouleaux

2. A third embodiment employs a movable rod (223) mounted inside the specimen tube (221) to induce accelerated rouleaux formation.

3. The bag (12) is held at an angle that promotes rapid settling of red blood cells that have agglomerated by the action of the starch (i.e. formation of rouleaux).